Morawa - Culture and History

Morowa was settled as late as 1905 and officially gazetted as a township in 1912.

Undoubtedly the town's greatest attraction is the Church of the Holy Cross. Like Northampton, Mullewa, Yalgoo, Tardun, Geraldton, Perenjori and Nanson, Morawa can boast a number of religious buildings by the famous Western Australian architect-priest Monsignor John Hawes. Between 1915-1939 Hawes designed and helped to build a large number of churches and church buildings in the Central West. His contributions to Morowa include the Church of the Holy Cross and an unusual small stone hermitage known as the Old Presbytery.

The plans for the church were completed in 1932. At the time Hawes', who had spent years living with the disapproval of the previous Bishop of Geraldton, Dr Richard Ryan, was dramatically back in favour. The new Bishop, an ex-plumber James Patrick O'Collins, upon meeting Hawes had declared: 'So you're the architect. Well with your architecture and my plumbing we'll put churches all over the diocese.'